One alternative to this dilemma is to store the large prints in boxes or large envelopes. This method is unsatisfactory, however, as the prints sit in a closet or drawer, making it inconvenient to share photographs with friends and family. Also, when I do take the images out of the box, they can get damaged as they’re shown and passed around.

So I searched for a better way to store and display my photographs. While browsing through the Light Impressions catalog, I saw a solution to these problems. Light Impressions manufactures a product called the Big Book, a very large photo album. Its dimensions are 25x20x11/4-inches, with the pages measuring 191/2x24 inches, making the pages large enough to hold a full-sized newspaper page. The book is made of acid-free, archival-quality materials. Two 11x17-inch prints (or one 13x19-inch print) may be mounted on one side of one page.

The scrapbook comes with 25 pages, which may be increased to 50 pages using the Big Book refill kit—an astounding total of 200 11x17-inch images (or 100 13x19 images) may be stored and displayed in the Big Book. I can write captions or relevant information on the spaces in between the photographs on the page. Light Impressions also offers the ability to personalize your Big Book with a line of up to 22 characters printed on the front.

I chose to mount my prints in the Big Book by using large corner mounts, also available from Light Impressions. The corner mounts are clear, archival-quality polyester with adhesive already applied to the backs. The adhesive is set back from the edges so that there’s no danger of it touching the image once mounted. Since the corners are pre-formed, I only need to pull off the backing and place the corner on the Big Book page. Some care is needed to apply the corners because the adhesive is very sticky and can easily stick to the wrong part of the page or the front of your print. The corners come 200 to a box (at four corners per image, you can mount 50 images with the contents of one box). Since the images aren’t permanently bound to the page, I can switch the order or replace photos in the book at will.

Now, when friends come over, I clear off a table and bring out my impressively sized photo album. I proudly show off my photographs that were taken with my digital cameras or scanned from my negative and slide archive. When I’m done showing my images, I simply put my album away, knowing that my large images will rest safely in archival-quality comfort.

Contact: Light Impressions, (800) 828-6216, www.lightimpressionsdirect.com.